It’s an estate that’s captured the world’s attention, partly because everyone loved the soul that we’ve lost, and partly because we can’t quite get over the fact that a lady with such incredible financial wealth, did not get around to making her Will.
If she’d died young, we might have understood that she wasn’t planning to die, but this was a woman in her seventies, who had been poorly.
It’s possible that she made an assessment that her estate was likely under law, to pass to her four children equally, that they would not have to compete with a husband, and so leave it for the law to apply, but it’s still curious.
You’d think that the cost of a Will would not have been off putting, but maybe Aretha didn’t know who to trust. Maybe she had that superstitious thought that if she got her Will in place she’d be more likely to die.
Whatever the reason for not spending an hour or two of her life getting things sorted, Aretha’s legacy is far more than the millions of pounds she has left, hopefully to her children. It’s her music, her legendary character, and hopefully, her ability to make you “Think”!
If you want to move things beyond just thinking about your Will, please contact your local specialist Willwriter. If you don’t think you’re ready yet, but you’d appreciate bouncing ideas off someone who cares about your Will, please pick up the phone to Jane’s office at 01727 840 240 or drop her a line at Jane@jcwillsandprobate.co.uk and we can have an email chat.